TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS IN WESTERN EUROPE: DEVELOPMENT OF A GEOCHEMICAL APPROACH OF GENERAL APPLICABILITY IN MINERAL EXPLORATION.

TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS IN WESTERN EUROPE: DEVELOPMENT OF A GEOCHEMICAL APPROACH OF GENERAL APPLICABILITY IN MINERAL EXPLORATION.

From 1983-03-01
to 1986-03-01

Project details

Total cost:

Not available

EU contribution:

Not available

Coordinated in:

France

Objective

TO INVESTIGATE A UNIFORM AND EFFICIENT METHOD OF GEOCHEMICAL PROSPECTING FOR TUNGSTEN DEPOSITS. TO DEVELOP A SET OF GEOCHEMICAL TEST EASILY APPLICABLE IN THE FIELD AND IN THE LABORATORY.

THIS INVESTIGATION IS ON CONTACTS, ON WOLFRAMITE - SCHEELITE QUARTZ VEINS AND ON SCHEELITE HOSTED IN CALC - SILICATE GNEISS. REDEARCH UNDER THE PRIMARY RAW MATERIALS PROGRAMME 1978-1981 (CONTRACTS WITH ECOLE DES MINES DE ST.ETIENNE AND WITH UNIVERSITE CATHOLIQUE DE LOUVAIN) HAS SHOWN:

2. A CLOSE ASSOCIATION, FOR SKARNS AND QUARTZ VEINS, WITH THE LATEST STAGES OF EVOLUTION OF GRANITOIDS WHICH SHOW POORLY FRACTIONATED REE PATTERNS AND LOW EU ANOMALIES.

3. POSSIBLE LONG RANGE METASOMATISM IN THE CASE OF STRATABOUND SCHEELITE (BERYLLIUM ENRICHMENT IN THE MINERALISED ROCK, POSITIVE EUROPIUM ANIMALIES, ABSENCE OF TYPICAL SUB-MARINE VOLCANOGENIC TRACE ELEMENTS AND NO INTRUSIVE ROCKS IN THE VICINITY).

TO MEET THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS CONTRACT, IT IS INTENDED TO TEST THE GEOCHEMICAL CRITERIA LISTED ABOVE ON A NUMBER OF DEPOSITS: - SKARNS: PYRENEES, PORTUGAL - QUARTZ VEIN DEPOSITS: HEMERDON (SW ENGLAN), PORTUGAL, FRENCH MASSIF CENTRAL - STRATABOUND SCHEELITE: PORTUGAL.

IN EACH CASE, USE WILL BE MADE OF THE FOLLOWING TECHNIQUES: MAJOR, TRACE AND REE ANALYSES BY NEUTRONIC ACTIVATION, INDUCTION COUPLED PLASMA, ATOMIC ABSORPTION AND X-RAY FLUORESCENCE; ISOTOPIC ANALYSES OF H, O, S AND C; FLUID INCLUSION THERMOMETRY; MINERALOGICAL AND PETROGRAPHICAL ANALYSES; THERMOCHEMISTRY BASED UPON MINERAL PARAGENESIS ANALYSES.

WHENEVER NECESSARY, LOCAL STRUCTURAL INVESTIGATIONS WILL ALSO BE UNDERTAKEN.

THIS PROJECT IS PART A JOINT PROJECT SUBMITTED WITH UNIVERSITE CATHOLIQUE DE LOUVAIN (CONTRACT N. 127) AND BRGM-SGN (CONTRACT 031), AND WILL ALSO BE CARRIED OUT IN CLOSE COOPERATION WITH PROJECT FROM UNIV. UTRECHT (CONTRACT 074), ENTE MINERARIO SICILIANO (CONTRACT 061), IGS (CONTRACT 096), BRGM-RDM TOULOUSE (CONTRTACT 036), AND PERTUSOLA (CONTRACT 060).